Thoughts on Life, Love, Politics, Hypocrisy and Coming Out in Mid-Life

Monday, April 23, 2018

Why Democrats Must Take Control of the House

While many progressive remain hopefully optimistic that a blue wave in the 2018 midterm elections will see control of the House of Representatives shift to Democrat control, a piece in Slate underscores why this is so important in terms of halting Donald Trump's horrific agenda. Better yet, it could lead to the Trump/Russia ties and/or money laundering efforts finally see the light of day. While many often hear the refrain that this is the most important election cycle, this time, it is really true. Hence why Democrats need to use care and an over the top ground game to get voters to the polls in November. Here are article highlights:

If President Trump hates Bob Mueller so much, why doesn’t he have him
fired?

For most Republicans, the concern over firing Mueller is
that it would incite a backlash in the 2018 midterm elections, costing them
unified control of Congress and imperiling their policy objectives.

But for [Trump] the president, the concerns are much more personal.
A Democratic takeover would be catastrophic. Instantly, the House would be
converted into a hive of investigatory bodies. In a Democratic House, the grand
Washington battle will no longer be Trump versus Mueller. It will be Trump
versus 21 subpoena-wielding House committee chairmen, played out in public on a
24-hour televised loop.

Unlike a legislative agenda, executive oversight can be
prosecuted by just one chamber. Taking control of the House would empower
Democratic committee chairmen to aggressively pursue every aspect of the
president’s personal and political interests.

There are 21 House committees that endow their chairmen with subpoena
power. Some require a committee vote and/or consultation with the ranking
minority member, but none endow the minority with veto power. The expansive
subpoena power of Congress is limited only by countervailing constitutional
rights. For example, Congress cannot force a witness to waive her right not to
incriminate herself. Otherwise, Congress can compel testimony, and the
production of documents, from any government employee or private citizen in
America.

A House committee can initiate inquiries into any area
within its jurisdiction. This investigative authority, and the subpoena power
through which it is advanced, has mostly lain dormant in the 115th Congress.
When Republicans have exercised their subpoena power, it has mostly been in the
service of defending the president against Mueller’s investigation. But that
could change in the blink of an eye, as Trump has surely been advised by some
old Washington hand.

When it comes to opportunities for congressional oversight,
the Trump administration provides what military strategists call a target-rich
environment.

The Ways and Means Committee could sharpen the national discussion
around tax fairness by subpoenaing President Trump’s tax returns. As the 2018
elections draw near, that committee could convene hearings to educate the
public on how Trump’s sabotage of Obamacare will send consumers’ health
insurance premiums soaring.

The Financial Services Committee, chaired by Rep. Maxine
Waters, a favorite target of Trump’s invective, could exercise its authority to
investigate the phenomenon of foreign oligarchs laundering ill-gotten gains
through purchases of luxury condominiums in hot markets, including through
Trump-owned buildings in New York and Miami.

Now imagine a pajama-clad President Trump gazing in horror at the trio
of TV monitors in the presidential bedroom, one showing Jared Kushner being
grilled on his never-ending security-clearance-application corrections and
amendments, while the second displays Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin
attempting to defend his addiction to first-class flights, and the third presents
a tableau of heartland factory workers displaced by the Bush steel tariffs of
2002. Consider the president’s unbridled anger as he watches a cable-news
version of This Is Your Life, a procession of Cabinet secretaries,
disgraced former White House officials, unpaid construction contractors,
disqualified eligible voters, terrified Dreamers, abandoned factory workers,
and colorful NDA signatories, all led by Democratic House committee chairs,
many of whom Trump has traduced in nasty personal terms.

With that image in mind, you can see why Trump stops short
of firing Mueller. If a rash decision to dispatch the special counsel costs
Republicans their House majority, the president will subject himself to a
ceaseless barrage of charges, confessions, and revelations. For Trump, that’s
the nightmare scenario.

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Out gay attorney in a committed relationship; formerly married and father of three wonderful children; sometime activist and political/news junkie; survived coming out in mid-life and hope to share my experiences and reflections with others.
In the career/professional realm, I am affiliated with Caplan & Associates PC where I practice in the areas of real estate, estate planning (Wills, Trusts, Advanced Medical Directives, Financial Powers of Attorney, Durable Medical Powers of Attorney); business law and commercial transactions; formation of corporations and limited liability companies and legal services to the gay, lesbian and transgender community, including birth certificate amendment.

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